


Don't Say It's A Dream, Tell Me You'll Stay

by BigBadLittleRed



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Depressed Stiles, Drama, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Feels, Hurt Derek, M/M, Psychic Bond, not actual character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-04
Updated: 2015-07-25
Packaged: 2018-03-16 07:27:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3479492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BigBadLittleRed/pseuds/BigBadLittleRed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It all seemed to be okay for a while, but Stiles supposes a happy ending was never in the cards for them in the first place. Derek is killed in an explosion just as everything begins to piece together. Stiles begins seeing and hearing Derek all the time.. Is he going crazy, or could it be that the man standing in the doorway with sad eyes is his fallen companion?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Memoriam

Scott was on the phone with Isaac when it happened, they were in the car on the way to the loft. Stiles was probably driving like a madman because even Scott seemed worried, he put the speaker on. Isaac was rambling about Derek having called him about someone breaking in, and how the phone cut off. Scott just kept repeating over and over again.

 

"He'll be fine, he's Derek."

 

Stiles still remembers the tremors in Isaac's voice as they all drove towards the loft to help their pack mate. Yes, pack mate... Since La Iglesias, things had changed. Malia had left with Peter, Braeden had gone off on a hunt for the She-Wolf, but the rest of them stayed... Isaac had come back, they were a pack, a real one.. It took a lot of convincing, but Derek started hanging out with them. Smiling more, laughing even.. They had nights where they went bowling, or just out to a restaurant. Just normal things, things that they hadn't been able to do for a while.

 

But it didn't last, they must be cursed, that's what Stiles thinks to himself as they pull up in the parking lot...

 

As they scramble from the Jeep, Isaac's car screeching into the lot.

 

The blast is deafening, Stiles stands and stares. Scott is screaming Derek's name, calling out for him, a small sliver of hope that promises Derek got out in time.. But the older man is nowhere to be seen, only the flames, the debris. Stiles is numb, because they were supposed to be happy. They had finally gotten their chance to be happy, Derek deserved to be happy! They all did!

 

Stiles looks around, Scott's kneeling on the pavement, head in his hands. Isaac walks forward, places a hand on his Alpha's shoulder. The gesture is familiar, one that sends a sharp pain through his chest as the feeling comes back to him slowly then all at once. He drops on all fours, tears burning his eyes, throat dry. He doesn't remember screaming, but that night his throat is raw when he trudges up the stairs, feeling his father's pity-filled and concerned gaze at his back.

 

He hears the words in his ears, repeating over and over again that night as he stares at the ceiling.

 

"We found parts of a body, I'm sorry son..." His father said to him, sadness in his eyes.

 

Scott sits in the Jeep and cries.. Stiles doesn't even care when Liam punches his Jeep and knocks a dent into it, tears streaming down the young boy's face. Isaac curls up in the back seat, quietly mourning while sticking close to his Alpha and staying invisible. Kira and Lydia arrive just as the police do, Kira consoles Scott in the car, Lydia wiping at her face as she disappears to go find Liam who had stormed off.

 

Why them?

 

Everything bad happened to them... Every thing that could go wrong, it does.

 

They cremate what's left of the body, Stiles stands behind Scott as they bury the ashes in the woods. They plant an oak tree over it, it was Lydia's idea.

 

"Something strong, like he was."

 

 _Was_.

 

The word tightens his chest and makes him feel hollow.

 

There's a plaque in front of the sapling, the words etched into it are ones he's never going to forget.

 

**Derek Sebastian Hale**

**December 25, 1986 - March 11, 2015**

**'Watching Over Us In Life And In Death.'**

 

The triskele above the words makes Stiles ache with sorrow.

 

Derek Hale deserved so much better....

 

 


	2. Terrors Of A Different Kind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles has a nightmare about an unfamiliar face and voices.. Yet the eyes seeing this are not his own, and one of the voices he hears is one that grates his heart to shreds and make him doubt what he knows.

_It's dark, and all he can hear is labored breathing alongside footsteps echoing louder and louder. A small click is followed by a blinding light coming on, his vision blurs as he blinks away. But Stiles then realizes that his movements aren't his own, just a simple bystander._

 

_"Okay, we're going to try again.." A strong voice rumbles, he blinks up at a dark figure that slowly becomes a little more visible. There's a simple bulb illuminated above him, setting a glow across the small and dirty concrete room. There's a table in front of him, but he's more focused on the man standing before him._

 

_He has light blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, lips that curl into a sinister grin. There's a small scar on the right side of his top lip._

 

_"You have how many wolves in your pack?" He asks, slowly the head he's trapped in turns to look at the ceiling._

 

_"Look at me, you filthy mutt!" A hand hits his face, and Stiles definitely feels that. His head jerks to the side roughly, and his vision pulses with blurs and specks of bright light._

 

_"How many wolves are in your pack?" A hand fists itself in his hair, it feels longer than his own, foreign. The quiet exclamation of pain that wrenches its way from his mouth when the fist twists tightly is not his own... It's deeper, rusty and dry._

 

_"F-Four.. Four.." He rasps, the voice is familiar, but altered. The man before him smiles brightly._

 

_"First word you've said since you've gotten here.. I guess those beatings have really loosened your tongue.. Or maybe it's the voices, is it the voices?" He asks quietly, amused._

 

_"Maybe I should get Eliza back in here... She can go on for hours with that spell.." He murmurs, the hand in his hair moves down and soothes its way over his cheek. It feels course and calloused._

 

_"Is that what you want, Derek?" The sound of the name makes his heart speed up._

 

_"N-N... No..." The head he's inside shakes slowly, eyes fluttering closed for a moment before snapping open._

 

_"Okay.. So four wolves.. How about humans?" The man inquires._

 

_"None." He's lying, if this is their Derek.. Stiles is human._

 

_There's two loud bangs on the door, and the man clicks his tongue with a look of disappointment._

 

_"I thought you'd know better than to lie to me, Derek.." He sighs, before something dark is put over his face. The water is freezing cold when it pours over him, he can't breathe, drowning.. He's drowning!_

 

**"Stiles!"**

 

He flails, trying so hard to get away from the water, he can't breathe!

 

**"Stiles, wake up!"**

 

His eyes snap open, panting erratically as he becomes aware of his surroundings. He's on the couch, Scott sitting over him.

 

"Derek!" Is the first word he gets out, Scott's eyes cloud over with pain.

 

"He's not here, Stiles.." He whispers, and Stiles remembers...

 

No, he was there.. Being hurt and tortured for information..

 

"He's being hurt.. By the sorcerers..." He mutters, still catching his breath.

 

"It was just a nightmare, Stiles.. You dozed off.. Derek's been gone for months..." Scott sighs, irises dying a dark red in a flicker of emotion in just a moment.

 

Stiles falls silent, it was all so real... How could.. No, Derek was dead.. He wasn't coming back...

 

He sits up slowly, nodding.

 

"I guess my mind just refuses to accept it.." He murmurs, running a hand through his hair. Scott stands and turns off the TV, patting Stiles' shoulder before turning towards the door.

 

"I'll see you tomorrow." He says quietly, once the door clicks shut and the engine in the driveway has dulled out, Stiles is left in silence.

 

"It all seemed so real." He says to himself, rubbing at his cheek, where he remembers the sting of the slap, but the pain doesn't remain.

 

 


	3. These Voices In My Head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles begins hearing things, he tries his best to ignore them.. But it's hard to ignore a person he'd grown to love crying for help.

Stiles is on his computer, doing research... Okay so it was technically just bored Google searching, which took up most of his summer when he was at home. Just randomly looking up one thing after another, compiling useless information. It was interesting to him at least.

 

_"Please stop."_

 

Stiles pauses, fingers hovering over his keyboard. He looks around, but his room is still and he's alone. His father is supposed to be at the station, Scott is with Kira, Liam with Isaac. Lydia with her mom... He stands slowly and walks to his door, leaning out and peering down the hall.

 

"Dad? You home?" He calls, no answer, complete silence.

 

"Losing it, Stilinski.." He murmurs to himself, walking back to his desk.

 

A scream cuts through the silence, he claps his hands over his ears and spins around. Nothing, absolutely nothing.. It sounded like someone had screamed right into his ear.

 

_"I TOLD YOU EVERYTHING!"_

 

He knows that voice, Stiles' heart is racing as he searches for an answer.

 

"Derek?" He calls out softly.

 

_"No more! Please!"_

 

Stiles brings his hands up over his ears again, sinking onto the floor and squeezing his eyes shut.

 

"Stop it, just leave me alone! You're dead!" He shouts, pressing hard against his ears.

 

_"Scott! Stiles!"_

 

A mournful howl is heard, even through the barriers of his hands.

 

"SHUT UP!" He screams.

 

It all falls silent, all except for his heart pounding in time to his soft gasps of fear. He breaks down then on his bedroom floor, sobbing into his hands. He missed Derek, he missed him so much he was subconsciously torturing himself...


	4. Losing My Mind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's not just the voices anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( Been a while since the last update, but I assure you I have not forgotten! )

The voices stop, Stiles still hasn't told anyone.. It had only been a few instances, where his friend's voice had crept into his mind and spoken broken whispers. No doubt, he was suffering from serious grief, but this was a whole new level of crazy he could _not_ share with anyone.

 

Hearing voices wasn't something to take lightly, his mother started hearing voices when she got sick.

 

But then they stopped, he was okay... It had been a month since the last incident, maybe he could finally move on.

 

"You look different." A voice rasps as he was dozing on his bed, he jolts upright, startled. There, standing in the doorway, was Derek. His skin was pale, dark circles beneath his eyes. His hair was limp, unlike how it used to be, sans gel. It fell onto his forehead in sticky strands, glued to his forehead by a splash of blood near his hairline.

 

"No, you cannot be doing this to me. I do not have dementia, I am not having a hallucination." He turns over onto his stomach, shoving his face into his pillow.

 

"Funny, I thought you were the hallucination to be honest..." Derek's voice is dry, tired, more exhausted than it has ever sounded. Footsteps shuffle across the room, closer to him.

 

"A hallucination thinking the real thing is a hallucination?" Stiles laughs into his pillow, getting a choked cough of a chuckle from Derek.

 

"How's school?" The older man asks softly.

 

"It's summer vacation..." He turns his head slightly, peeking out at Derek, who's leaning against the wall next to his window. His expression darkens further, looking outside.

 

"I've been gone for a while, then." He mutters, Stiles nods.

 

"So.. This is real?" Derek questions, the younger man sits up. He gets up off the bed, approaches Derek slowly. He reaches out towards his face, fingers brushing against his heated skin.

 

"I can touch you." He murmurs in awe, staring down at his hand before reaching forward again. Derek's form suddenly flickers though, and he's gone.

 

"Derek?" He calls quietly, turns slightly and finds Derek standing in the doorway again.

 

"I miss you... All of you." He tells the teen with a small shrug. The sound of footsteps on concrete echo in Stiles' mind, he looks around. Derek squeezes his eyes shut and sighs.

 

"Can't you leave me alone?" He whispers, a deep voice chuckles.

 

"We still have much to discuss.." The sound of crackling electricity makes Stiles jump, feeling a tingling sensation feeling in his finger's as Derek's appearance flickers in and out.

 

"Der?" He steps forward, Derek looks up at him, no, past him. Eyes broken and weary.

 

"I'm not telling you anything else.." As the last of his words fall from his mouth they start to quiet, as if in the next room all of the sudden, Derek's suddenly gone.

 

Stiles feels the tears well into his eyes, bringing a hand up over his mouth. He turns and swipes a hand across his desk, knocking off a cup of pencils in a fit of rage. He drops back down onto his bed, head falling into his hands with a tired sigh.

 

 


	5. Tethered Souls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles starts talking to Derek more often, finds him to be more of a companion than ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( Been a while, yeah? Sorry about that, but I promise, I will always come back! )

Over time, Derek appearing becomes a regular thing. Usually when he's alone. There was one time where he appeared for a few minutes while he was hanging with the Pack, but he'd flickered away within seconds. Nobody had seen him, so that made Stiles feel worse.

 

He sort of just appears in places, standing awkwardly until Stiles starts talking to him. He always sounds tired, always looks haggard and weak. But Stiles tries his best to make him smile, he thinks this is because he wants to feel better himself.. So it was sort of like making his subconscious happy, right? His subconscious had been sounding like Derek before the incident, so maybe it was materializing so he could confront his issues.

 

"Confronting your subconscious? So I'm your subconscious?" Derek asks as he sits on the couch, head tilted back with his eyes closed. His words slur together sometimes, like he's barely awake. Stiles nods from his position next to him, leaned back against the arm of the couch with his legs across Derek's lap.

 

"Yeah, that's the only thing I can figure out... Because nobody else can see you, and you're the only thing I see... I'm not losing time, or hallucinating scary things.. It's just you." The younger explains with a sigh.

 

"That's a good theory... You know, when I was shot, I had a dream about you... When Kate had broken into my loft.. I didn't even realize it was real, I thought I was dreaming and you were real.. And we were in the locker room, I was telling you about the dream.." Derek tells him quietly.

 

Stiles' eyes scan Derek's face, it's pale and has blood dried and splattered across it, but he looks calm.

 

"And I said I didn't remember waking up, I asked you how to tell if you're dreaming.. And you told me-" His voice trails off slightly.

 

"You have extra fingers in dreams." Stiles finishes with a hand through his hair.

 

"I woke up with her standing over me, a hole in my stomach..." He shakes his head slowly.

 

"That's called Maladaptive Daydreaming.. It's a coping mechanism, you couldn't deal with the fact that Kate was alive still." Stiles tells the other, reaches out and touches Derek's hair on instinct. It's sticky with dirt and blood, but he can't help it. Derek always feels so real.

 

"Sounds like something in a PTSD pamphlet." Derek says softly, turns his head slightly and opens his eyes. Stiles still hasn't found a color for them, too many blues, greens, and browns.

 

"How would you know what a PTSD pamphlet has in it?" Stiles snorts quietly, Derek frowns.

 

"I had to read up on it when I was sixteen, hell, according to my therapist.. I've still got it." He rolls his eyes, the most Derek-like thing he's done since he'd gotten there that morning.

 

"Therapy? Derek Hale goes to therapy?" Stiles smiles gently, Derek gives a small smile in return.

 

"Can't do everything alone, I learned that from you guys." He pokes Stiles in the chest.

 

"Well at least you're not completely hopeless.. I guess you're not as hard-headed as I thought." He quips.

 

"Nobody is as hard-headed as Stiles Stilinski." Derek replies smartly.

 

"You're damn right, buddy." Stiles laughs, a more genuine laugh, one nobody has heard since the explosion.

 

"Stiles? Who's here with you?" He hears from the kitchen, Scott...

 

"Nobody!" He calls back, peers over at the couch. Derek's still sitting there.

 

"Guess I should go." He mutters with a sigh, looking in the direction of the kitchen.

 

"No, I wanna see if anyone can see you.." He explains, before turning on the TV.

 

"You sure? I heard you talking to someone." Scott walks into the living room, Isaac in tow.

 

"Do you see anyone here?" He says jokingly, before glancing back to Derek, who's looking at Scott and Isaac with a sad expression. There's a light glistening in his eyes, almost like unshed tears. Scott and Isaac look around, before shrugging.

 

"Must have been TV." Isaac suggests, Scott nods with a sigh. They both sit down at Stiles' feet.

 

"Goodbye, Stiles." Derek murmurs, and when Stiles looks back at him, he's gone.

 

"You say something, Stiles?" Scott turns his head, frowning.

 

"You guys need to get your wolfy hearing checked." Stiles laughs, not genuine like with Derek before. He tussles Scott's hair, turns his eyes to the TV and tries not to dwell on the devastation on Derek's face when he saw Isaac and Scott.. Like he was hoping so hard that they'd be able to see him, but they couldn't.

 


	6. Mind And Body

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles finds that spending time with Derek is the thing he wants most nowadays.

It's not that he doesn't like his pack, his friends, his family. It's just, they're not who he wants to be with at the moment. He just has this urge to sit and await Derek's next appearance, to be able to see his face again.

 

Sometimes the older man quiet, distant, lost in another world it seems. Other times he could be seen as more connected, focused. But those circles under his eyes only get worse, the glimmer in them gone, red veins more prominent than ever before in the whites of them. He doesn't mention them, but he worries..

 

How is supposed to worry about someone who's a figment of his imagination?

 

"Are you tired?" He asks one day out of the blue, Derek looks over at him with curiosity.

 

"Yeah, don't get much sleep in this chair." He mutters, yet they're both laying on the bed together.

 

"What do you mean?" He questions, completely confused.

 

"Well I'm not here, not really.. It's like if I think about you hard enough, I can come here... But I'm really with the sorcerers." He explains softly.

 

"The sorcerers, my dream was real?" He murmurs, Derek frowns at him.

 

"Dream?" He inquires, but Stiles waves him off.

 

"Can't you get some sleep now?" He changes the subject, Derek shakes his head.

 

"I just get sent back to the chair, s'too cold, too uncomfortable to sleep.." He shrugs.

 

"I'm sorry." Stiles whispers, Derek looks at him with a soft smile.

 

"It's not your fault." He says.

 

"Doesn't mean I can't be worried about you." Stiles lifts his hand, places it atop Derek's. It's covered in goosebumps, icy to the touch. Images flash through his mind, a cold room that was damp and dark.

 

"I wish we could have talked more." Derek says instead of replying, turning his hand over and clasping it in Stiles'.

 

"We're talking now." Stiles argues.

 

"I'm a figment of your imagination, or you're a figment of mine.. Whatever the hell this is, it's not real." Derek shakes his head, eyes averting to the ceiling.

 

"Maybe it is..." Stiles whispers, before sitting up. "Maybe we're both real." He says a bit louder.

 

"Get away from me." Derek's gone, his voice echoing in the room around him.

 

"Derek?" Stiles calls, staring at his bed.

 

"Stop!" Derek cries, and Stiles feels it. He feels the icy burn across his stomach, slicing through his insides. He screams in agony, falling to the floor with one hand clutching at his stomach.

 

"I told you to stop talking to yourself." A voice whispers in his ear, before the pain grows sharper. He collapses fully, writhing in agony, curled up tight.

 

There's a whimpering Stiles can hear, through his own breathy sobs.

 

"Suck it up, Hale." The man spits, and a stinging feeling blooms in his cheek with the resonating sound of a sharp slap. His vision is blurred, so much noise around him.

 

Footsteps all around him as his sight begins to dim.

 

"Derek..." He murmurs, hearing only a choked whimper in response.


	7. Wake Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles pieces things together, it's time to get moving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( I'm so sorry it took me so long to update! But I'm here, I swear it! )

When Stiles wakes up, he doesn't recognize his surroundings at first. Vision blurry and trying to focus on anything he can, there are voices around him coming into earshot.

 

"He's waking up, go get Scott." That's Isaac, his voice demanding and worried. Footsteps race away, Stiles realizes that the ceiling above him is that of Scott's bedroom, a sight he'd grown accustomed to. "Stiles? Can you hear me?" Isaac's warm hand touches his own, he turns his head ever so slightly to look in the light baby blue irises of his pack mate.

 

"Isaac.." He murmurs, the young man smiles lightly. Then it comes back in a rush, he sits up quickly. "DEREK!" He screams just as Liam and Scott rush into the room, Isaac's grabbing onto his shoulder and trying to push him back down gently. "Scott! Derek's alive! He's alive!" He shouts.

 

"Stiles, it was a dream... We found you passed out in your bedroom, pale and barely breathing..." Scott explains calmly, pushing him back down to lay down. "Sleep deprivation as far as my mom can tell."

 

"No, I've been seeing him. He really is alive. I'm not sure how we've been doing it." He rants with a flail of his arms. "He appears around the room, talking to me! Scott, he's hurt and he needs our help!" He pleads, Scott frowns.

 

"Stiles, I know you want Derek back.. We all do." He tries to touch Stiles' arm gently but he just jerks away.

 

"No! He's fucking alive! The sorcerers have him, that's why I passed out! I was talking to him and he was with me, and they came back and they stabbed him.. I felt it, Scott.. I felt the blade tear through me." He exclaims, Scott and Isaac share an uneasy look, Liam looks downright heartbroken.

 

"He's alive!" He restates with anger, feeling a sudden pain radiate through him, a bone deep ache, he winces.

 

"Stiles." Derek's voice, echoing around him.

 

"Derek?" He whispers, his pack mates are staring at him with concern. "Der, I'm here, are you okay? Can you appear?" He questions with worry.

 

Derek appears and falls down onto the floor, coughing violently. His pack mates jump like they've been electrocuted, all focused on where Derek is kneeling on his hands and knees.

 

"Derek?" Scott whispers.

 

"You can see him!" Stiles cheers with excitement, slipping from his bed and kneeling next to Derek, placing a hand on his back. He's shaking violently with tremors, when he looks up, his eyes are glassy and he looks like he's going to either be sick or pass out, maybe both. "Shit, you're looking bad." He adjusts the older man to where he's resting against Stiles' chest, freezing cheek resting against his throat.

 

"That's... Derek..." Isaac breathes, tears in his eyes.

 

Scott moves forward, hand reaching down to touch his friend, but his hand just sort of disappears inside him. He jerks it back, looking fearful.

 

"I think we're connected by the mind... Our connection has gotten so strong I can project it to you guys too, I guess." He murmurs, running his hand through Derek's sweaty hair. "Fuck, I think he's in shock or something." He whispers, Derek shudders almost in reply, tucking himself closer to Stiles.

 

"He's not really here.." Liam says, kneeling down in front of them. His eyes are big and sad. "Where is he?" He asks, his gaze is suddenly determined.

 

"I'm not sure... A room somewhere, a basement probably. I've seen it a few times." He explains, hushing Derek softly when he whimpers as Stiles adjusts him a little.

 

"How can we find him?" Liam looks back at Scott, who still looks like he's been stabbed in the heart.

 

"I don't... I think we should call Deaton." Their Alpha explains hesitantly, before nodding seriously. "I'll be back."

 

Stiles gets Derek onto Scott's bed onto his side, he's shivering and his teeth are clattering together. Stiles feels his pulse and finds it to be racing and off beat.

 

"Derek, gotta stay awake... You have to stay here." He coaxes quietly, touching Derek's cool cheek, his eyes are doing this sickening constant rolling movement behind fluttering eyelids. "Here me, buddy? Got to stay awake, stay here." He commands, the wolf lets out a heavy exhale and his eye movements begin to slow. His eyes open slightly, hazed and not all there, but still awake. He looks at Liam, who's beside him, and Isaac who's across on the other side of the bed. "Talk to him, tell him you can see him." He murmurs.

 

"Derek? Can you hear me?" Isaac's voice cracks slightly, and Derek's head attempts to look back at the young man. Stiles pushes at his body until he's on his back, head hanging limply against the bed as he observes Isaac with an unfocused stare.

 

"I-Isaac.." The man croaks, Isaac's face lights up. "C'n see me?" The man mutters softly, Isaac nods with a small smile. "Good.. Where... Stiles?" Stiles reaches out and turns the man's head, which goes along with the movement without resistance.

 

"Right here, Der." He combs his fingers through the wolf's hair.

 

"St'les..." He grins a lazy smile before his eyes turn to Liam. "Liam..." He coos softly, Liam lets out a soft laugh filled with tears. "D'nt cry... S'okay." His hand moves slightly until it falls off the bed, barely smacking the young wolf's chest. "Keepin' you safe."

 

"Derek, hey." Stiles pulls the man's focus back to him. "The room, do you remember how you got there?" Derek frowns, Stiles sees a flash of the room. "No, Derek, stay here." He demands.

 

"W'nna come home... M'scared.. It's cold." The older man slurs, a soft whine escaping him.

 

"We're gonna try to get you home, sweetheart. But you have to really focus on staying here and talking to me about the room.. What was before this room?" He's suddenly standing in the room itself, before Derek.

 

Derek's strapped to a chair, face pale and slack, there's blood all over his ratty shirt, having dribbled onto the floor in a huge puddle around him.

 

"Shit, holy shit..." Stiles gasps, stepping forward.

 

"B-Before..." The man's mouth doesn't move, his voice is in his head. "There was... The explosion." They're both teleported to what Stiles knows to be the loft before the explosion. He's an observer, watching as a group of men break into the loft. Derek is there, looking newer and healthier, angry. He rushes one of the men, but a hand thrusts out and a spell is cast. Derek goes flying and slams into a wall with a strangled noise.

 

"Hale." One man growls, the man with the scar on his lip and the blonde hair. "Where's your friends?" He taunts with a grin.

 

It's like he's watching a video and it glitches out, reloading as suddenly Derek is in the middle of the room being held with a couple of glowing hands, a phone at his ear.

 

"Someone-Somebody's breaking in, you all need to get to the loft!" One of the men not touching Derek aims a gun at the ceiling and fires off a couple rounds, one of the hands holding Derek glows bright red and he screams in agony, the phone gets dropped.

 

"Get the decoy!" Another glitch, a dead body is positioned in the middle of the floor as they set up a giant explosive near the corpse. A woman casts a spell on the body and it morphs into Derek, lifeless and pale. The real Derek's dragged out by the arms, looking drained and out of it.

 

"We need to have time to talk to Mr. Hale without being interrupted." They rush to get into a van, Derek's thrown on the floor, staring at the ceiling. The men are discussing idly. "We need good information about the pack if we're going to take them down. The eldest advisor of the pack should do." A kick is delivered to Derek's side, he doesn't even react.

 

They don't drive for long, or maybe they do, the projections keep fizzling out. Suddenly Derek's drawn from the van as they all walk towards a small brick building, there isn't much around but a road and trees. Derek gets dragged down some stairs when they reach the back of the building, before a door is opened and he's put into a chair and strapped in. The room he's currently in.

 

Stiles can feel tears building, anger filling him to the brim. He's taken back to Scott's room, Scott's shaking him almost violently.

 

"Stiles!" He shouts, Stiles lets his eyes flutter open. "What happened? Where's Derek?" He demands, Stiles looks back at the bed, finding it empty.

 

"Fuck, he's losing so much blood. He probably passed out or something." He feels like someone's ripping out his soul, he hurts and longs to see Derek again. "We have to find him." He mutters, standing up.

 

"Where is he?" Scott exclaims.

 

"I'm not sure, but we're gonna find him." Stiles says hesitantly, marching down the stairs.

 

"Do you have a plan?" Liam asks as his friends follow after him hurriedly.

 

"The plan is to save Derek." Stiles says simply, opening the door and racing outside.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( Hope you enjoyed the new installment of this fic! Please comment if you did! )


	8. Burn It Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He doesn't know how he does it, but he just knows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( Welcome to the end!!! )

He gets into the Jeep, the others have barely pulled their feet inside, doors still open when Stiles jerks the car into motion. His hands are cold and numb, face hot and eyes burning with tears. He grips the steering wheel with white knuckles and speeds up. Someone touches his arm, but he jerks away and shoves the offending limb away. He's got one thing on his mind.

 

Derek.

 

He's not sure how long they drive but soon he's pulled up in front of the brick building, throwing the car into park. He leaps out and a man comes racing out with a gun in hand. A blur of movement slams into the man, Scott, with his eyes blazing red and actions harsh and unforgiving. He looks over to Stiles and nods, Stiles doesn't hesitate to move towards the back while the other clear out the brick house itself. Screams and gunfire start from the inside of the building, he ignores them.

 

He knows where Derek is, he's seconds away from seeing him again.

 

The basement door flies open and a man comes storming out. Stiles grabs onto his gun and yanks hard, tearing it from his hand before kneeing him in the crotch and slamming the butt of the gun into his temple. The man falls with barely a noise, he races down the concrete stairs.

 

"Derek?" He calls out, voice echoing down the empty hall. A woman steps out into the hall, a small smirk on her face.

 

"Don't make me hurt you, sweetheart." She says softly, voice sweet.

 

"Eliza, I'm guessing. You're after our pack, why wouldn't you want to hurt me?" He snaps, watching the shocked look on her face turn to rage. She utters something in a different language and he feels a pressure slam into his chest, he tumbles down the hallway until his back hits the stairs. "Big mistake, bitch." He snarls, standing up and walking forward. She looks unimpressed, it only fuels his rage.

 

She reaches for a knife in her boot and tries to aim it at his neck. He catches her wrist and twists until something cracks, slamming her into the wall.

 

"I don't play around when it comes to my pack." He hisses, pulls her forward and shoves her back, her skull bashing against the wall. He releases her limp body and lets it fall to the floor, stepping into the room at the end of the hall.

 

The same view he'd had not long before, except Derek is paler, chest no longer rising.

 

"Derek?" His voice is much softer, choked. The basement door down the hall slams open once more, Stiles leaps into action. He unties the man from his binds, grabbing his lifeless body and dragging it into the farthest corner away from the door. He hurries back to the door and closes it, retrieves the blood soaked chair Derek was in with a yank and shoves it under the door handle.

 

He returns to Derek's lifeless body, kneeling next to him and touching his cold cheek. The world feels dark and dim at the sight of the man so fragile.

 

"Derek, open your eyes." He whispers, patting against his stubble. He trails his hand down to his blood soaked abdomen and pulls up his shirt, revealing a long gash across his stomach. There are definitely entrails, Stiles feels a sob welling up in his throat. There's a loud bang against the door, he couldn't care less though. Derek wasn't breathing... He was gray and without life, he should have figured it out sooner, should have found him quicker.

 

He would still be alive, a little hurt, but alive...

 

He grips the older man and drags his upper body into his lap, cradling his limp head in the crook of his arm. The tears pour over then, at the sight of Derek Hale so at peace for once, but only in death. They drip down onto the crimson painted cracked porcelain of Derek's face, sobs wracking his chest as he holds tight, not wanting to let go.

 

Derek was dead... He was too late.

 

His chest feels like it's rupturing with the sudden realization that he had been falling for Derek for a long time, only just having put it together. He was in love with the man, but he'd never be able to hear that. He'd never hear the words 'I love you'... He probably hadn't heard them in a long time, not since Laura, or maybe even not since his family... He squeezes his eyes shut at the thought.

 

"I love you." He croaks out, just to say it. Just to hear it himself, tears still leaking from his tightly shut eyelids. Stiles can't help but hope he hears it, wherever his soul might rest. Hopefully somewhere with his family, where he can be happy after all his suffering.

 

A hand touches his shoulder and he reaches back to push it away, but finds that the angle's wrong. It's coming from in front of him.

 

His eyes snap open, finding pale hazel eyes gazing up at him in confusion.

 

"You're alive..." His voice is flat and void of emotion, the shock hitting him. "Derek!" He screams, a hysterical laugh flooding from him along with a wave of relieved tears.

 

"You're here." Derek murmurs, his voice is a little hoarse and tired, but filled with just as much relief.

 

"I'm here, I'm right here." The world comes back, sharper and brighter than ever now that it was graced with Derek's soft heartbeat and quiet ragged breath.

 

The door breaks down with a spray of splintered wood, Stiles turns his head and holds Derek a little closer.

 

Scott stands before him with Liam and Isaac beside their Alpha, looking scared and worried.

 

"He's alive." Stiles gives a small grin, the three boys sag with relief.

 

"Come on, we need to get him out of here." Scott says with a nod, walking over and smiling down at Derek, who gives a smirk in reply. Isaac and Scott get Derek to his feet, Stiles checks his stomach to find the wound healing. He can't help but feel like something happened in those few minutes of holding tight to Derek.

 

They get the older man to the Jeep, Stiles lets Isaac drive because Scott's an animal who likes to turn while going full speed. Derek sits in the back with Stiles, Stiles has an arm wrapped around his waist and he's resting his head against the younger's shoulder. Liam is giving them silent joyful puppy looks, but every time Stiles catches him he turns to look out the window instead.

 

"I heard you." Derek says softly, yawning.

 

"Yeah?" Stiles feels a smile tugging at his lips.

 

"I feel the same way."

 

Liam lets out a soft laugh, Isaac offers them a grin in the mirrors. Scott turns around in his seat to look back at them.

 

"Am I gonna have to listen in great detail about this relationship?" He looks so pained, Stiles can't help but laugh.

 

"I'm going to describe every second, Scotty. Payback, bud." He grins, Scott frowns and slumps back into his seat.

 

Derek nuzzles against his throat, sighing softly as he settles. Stiles runs a hand up and down his now warm back. They got another chance to make it worth it, to be happy. Stiles couldn't be more grateful.

 

They got their happily ever after.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( That's it, the end! I cried a little while writing this to be completely honest. Sorry for the feels, hope you enjoyed!! )


End file.
